Category Archives: Mars Colony

The International Space Station (ISS) has been circling the Earth for more than two decades now, contributing to major scientific experiments that have laid the groundwork for deep space explorations.

ISS, which was launched in 2000 and has orbited 227 nautical miles above Earth, has hosted more than 200 astronauts from 19 different countries.

However, ISS is now nearing the end of its service life, with US space agency NASA announcing plans to crash it into the Pacific Ocean in 2031. The famed piece of space technology will be pushed out of orbit before plunging into the ocean.

NASA revealed the detailed plan in a report submitted to Congress last week. It outlined a transition plan for the ISS, including the costs associated with the move and the future plans.

In 1993, the United States and Russia had announced plans to build the ISS together, with Japanese, Canadian, and European space agencies joining later.

A Russian rocket carried the first section of the space station, a control module, into space in 1998. Two weeks later, a crew on the US space shuttle Endeavor joined the control module to another component, the Unity node.

The space station was built over the next two years until it was prepared to bring a crew onboard. The first crew was dispatched on November 2, 2000. Since then, the space lab has housed more than 200 astronauts, establishing a permanent human presence in space.

Several historic firsts have been documented onboard the International Space Station over the past two decades. For example, in 2018, NASAs Cold Atom Lab became the first facility in space to create the fifth state of matter, known as a Bose-Einstein condensate.

However, the ISS is becoming increasingly dilapidated as time passes. Duncan Steel, a space scientist at Xerra Earth Observation Institute in New Zealand, told ABC News, Its not just humans living on board. Bacteria, fungi, and other microbes survive and thrive there too.

He added that there are bacteria colonies inside the space station that we dont always see, but that could cause a slew of issues. When theres a lot of recycled air, it can go into electronics and other things.

Moreover, the space stations structure has been strained by the docking and undocking of vehicles shuttling supplies and people back and forth, and different cracks and leaks have been fixed over time.

The cost of regular maintenance and upkeep is exorbitant; therefore eliminating the space station will save a significant amount of money.

According to NASAs International Space Station Transition Report, the ISS was supposed to crash in the South Pacific Oceanic Uninhabited Area, also known as Point Nemo. The deorbit would occur in January 2031.

Point Nemo has turned into a type of space graveyard, where defunct spacecraft are frequently laid to rest. The location is roughly around 2,700 km away from any land and is named after a figure in Jules Vernes novel, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.

Operators on the ground will use thrusters to regulate the space stations fall once it has been emptied and stripped of anything that needs to be retained, ultimately placing it on course for its eventual collapse.

ISS operators will perform the ISS re-entry burn, providing the final push to lower ISS as much as possible and ensure safe atmospheric entry, the transition plan explains.

The ISS was originally scheduled to be active for 15 years, but NASA decided to extend its stay in orbit by another 10 years in 2014. NASAs latest revelation means it will be around for nearly a decade longer than it was previously planned.

The ISS will be replaced by one or more commercially owned and operated space platforms, according to NASA. The private sector is technically and financially capable of developing and operating commercial low-Earth orbit destinations, with NASAs assistance, Phil McAlister, director of commercial space at NASA Headquarters, said in a statement.

NASA claims the switch to renting space on commercial platforms could save the space agency billions of dollars. The money saved will be applied to Nasas deep space exploration initiatives, allowing the agency to explore deep space further and faster.

The ISS presently costs NASA roughly $3.1 billion per year, with more than $1.3 billion going to station operations and research, and about $1.8 billion going to personnel and cargo transportation. According to a graph contained in the transition report, spending will remain flat until the fiscal year 2027.

NASA is expected to be one of the customers for commercial space stations to cut costs. If we are just one of many customers, the providers will be able to amortize their fixed cost over a bigger base, McAlister said. We will see cost savings just from that alone.

Aside from the US, Russia and China are both building their own space stations. Russia, which constructed and operates one side of the International Space Station, aims to develop and launch its own spacecraft in five or six years, the Russian Orbital Service Station.

China will finish the construction of its Tiangong (Heavens Palace) space station this year. By the time Tiangong becomes fully operational, China will be the only country to have its own space station as ISS will complete its service life.

The ISS never had a Chinese crew member on board, nor was it involved in any Chinese project. The Wolf Amendment, enacted by US lawmakers in 2011, effectively prohibited NASA and Chinese organizations from cooperating, due to human rights and national security concerns.

With the retirement of the ISS insight, NASA is facilitating private corporations to make a strong foothold in the space industry. NASA veteran Michael Suffredinis firm Axiom Space is at the forefront to develop a privately-owned space station a reality. And it plans on making this space station 97% cheaper than the ISS.

In October last year, aconsortium led by Lockheed Martin announced its plans to construct a permanently crewed commercial space station named Starlab which could be launched by 2027.

Jeff Bezos firm Blue Origin also unveiled plans for Orbital Reef, a joint venture with Boeing and some other firms. The Reef will host up to 10 people and is supposed to serve as a mixed-use business park. This orbiting industrial estate is expected to open by the end of the decade.

Although private-enterprise missions such as the ones offered by Elon Musks rocketry firm SpaceX have existed for several years, these projects are significant because they are planned on a much more splendid scale.

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NASA Plans Grand Funeral For Space Station; Starts Backing Tech Firms To Develop Privately-Owned Space Base - EurAsian Times

The Japanese conquest of Singapore in southeast Asia, on 15 February 1942, is often referred to in Western historical annals as the Fall of Singapore, as though this island had, for the first time, been captured by an imperial power.

The Japanese takeover of Singapore heralded an exchange from one set of colonial masters (the British Empire) to another (the Empire of Japan).

Read more: Japanese forces reach southern Malaya and Singapore outskirts, 80 years ago

The failure of Britain and its allies, to hold Singapore, was a severe blow to Londons prestige and power in the Far East. Writing in his memoirs Winston Churchill labeled it the worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history. As Britains prime minister and war leader, Churchill was ultimately responsible for military losses.

Yet at the time Churchill tried to absolve the British government of blame, saying that the Singapore defeat was due to Britain having to allocate war resources to Soviet Russia, as part of conditions stipulated in US president Franklin Roosevelts Lend-Lease Act of March 1941.

English historian Chris Bellamy wrote, As early as the beginning of 1942, British politicians used the resources diverted to Russia as an excuse for losing Singapore Churchill and [Anthony] Eden both said they had given to Russia what they had really needed for the defense of the Malay peninsula. This was untrue. British and Australian ground forces had been poorly trained and equipped for jungle warfare, and were simply outmatched and outfought by aggressive Japanese troops, enjoying superior morale.

The Japanese 25th Army, tasked with capturing British Malaya and the island of Singapore, comprised of about 30,000 men. The 25th Army was led by one of the most formidable commanders of the entire war, Lieutenant-General Tomoyuki Yamashita; and the force he commanded was the best led and equipped army that Japan had at its disposal, Mark E. Stillestated, a retired US Navy commander. Advancing through difficult terrain including extensive jungle, the 25th Army had captured all of the Malayan mainlands against bigger enemy forces in less than 8 weeks, by 31 January 1942.

Read more: Operation Barbarossa: An Overview Part Two

On that day, 31 January, the last British troops had retreated across the narrow Strait of Johore, traversing the bridge called the Causeway at Johore Bahru, which separated Malaya from Singapore; where Britains allies, the Indians and Australians, had now retired to, or at least those who survived the fighting on the Malayan mainland. The defending forces could still call on about 85,000 men to fight, though they were lacking in equipment and training while their morale was not good.

From his position at the Strait of Johore, Lieutenant-General Yamashita was looking through his binoculars at Singapore and its coastline. He again demonstrated his military acumen, by correctly assessing that the most heavily defended part of Singapore was in the northeastern section of the Strait. Yamashitas opposite number, Lieutenant-General Arthur Percival, had positioned his strongest force there, the British 18th Division.

Yamashita chose instead to attack a weakly-defended portion of the Strait, held by the 22nd Australian Infantry Brigade, between Tanjong Buloh and Tanjong Murai. The Japanese general decided to amass 16 of his battalions, to be launched in the first wave across an area of land 4.5 miles in breadth, with 5 battalions held back in reserve along with a tank regiment. Yamashita scheduled the assault on Singapore to begin at 8 pm on 8 February 1942.

To mount his attack across the Strait of Johore to Singapore, Yamashita had at his disposal many scores of collapsible boats, 30 small landing craft, along with numerous pontoons, the latter consisting of floating platforms used to support temporary bridges. Yamashita went to great lengths to disguise where his main thrust would fall. Churchill acknowledged that the Japanese hadundertakenlong and careful planning for their raid on Singapore. The Japanese Imperial Guards built dummy camps in the northeastern sector, so as to make the British believe they were preparing to attack in that area.

Percival, in overall command of British and Commonwealth forces, was confident that the weight of the Japanese landing would indeed come there, in the northeast. Pre-attack Japanese artillery raids were also concentrated in the northeast, strengthening Percivals impression that he would be proved right. The Japanese assault troops were not moved forward until the night prior to the landing. About 24 hours before the attack on Singapore had commenced, the Australians detected extensive enemy activity opposite them, but it was too late for Percival to reconstitute his forces.

Read more: The 20th anniversary of US military intervention in Afghanistan

Churchillwrote, The preparation of field defenses and obstacles, though representing a good deal of local effort, bore no relation to the mortal needs which now arose The spirit of the Army had been largely reduced by the long retreat and hard fighting on the peninsula. The threatened northern and western shores were protected by the Johore Strait, varying in width from 600 to 2,000 yards, and to some extent by mangrove swamps at the mouths of its several rivers.

On the morning of 8 February 1942, Japanese planes and artillery started bombarding the positions held by the 22nd Australian Infantry Brigade. The barrage intensified as the day went on. At about 8:30 pm on 8 February, after nightfall, the Australians sighted Japanese landing craft nearing their area. Regardless of having no artillery support, the Aussies resisted strongly and sank some Japanese vessels but, even so, the enemy soon broke through their thinly spread rearguard.

By 4 am on 9 February, the Australian forces had all been ordered to fall back, a difficult task in the dark, and they suffered debilitating losses. The Japanese had established a toehold on Singapore and they could not be dislodged.Percivals command center was unable to implement operations in Singapore at any level.On 9 February Percival himself admitted that the situation is undoubtedly serious. Yamashita sensed the British confusion, and he ordered a full-blooded drive to capture Singapore as quickly as possible. Within 2 days, the Japanese hadcapturedone-third of Singapore.

On the 3rd day of the offensive, during the evening of 10 February, the enemy had penetrated British defenses, such as the critically important Jurong Line, before Percival had realized the attempt had been made. Stille recognized, The loss of this line was the last chance to defend Singapore city.

British-led counterattacks could either not be executed in time, or were poorly organized. On 10 February Churchill wrote of the position at Singapore, There must at this stage be no thought of saving the troops or sparing the population. The battle must be fought to the bitter end at all costs The honor of the British Empire and of the British Army is at stake With the Russians fighting as they are and the Americans so stubborn at Luzon [northern Philippines], the whole reputation of our country and our race is involved.

Read more: Drawing the Soviet Union into a Vietnam quagmire: Part 2

At 6 pm on 11 February, day 4 of the Japanese offensive, the landmark British naval base in Singapore had been abandoned, and explosives were deployed, but the base was merely partially destroyed. Yamashitas soldiers did not let up on 12 February, as they moved down the strategically vital Bukit Timah road towards Singapore city.Beginning at around noon on 12 February, the British and their allies started withdrawing to a final perimeter around Singapore city.

By the morning of 13 February, the defenders held a perimeter stretching 28 miles around Singapore. Their forces were depleted. The British Governor in Singapore, Shenton Thomas, gave orders that the broadcasting station be blown up, and the contents of the treasury burned.The supplies of rubber in Singapore were incinerated, while the tin-smelting plants and a number of other factories were liquidated. At some plants, the attempt to demolish them was prevented by its owners and staff. Other facilities were deemed necessary for the islands inhabitants.

Some troops at the rear fled their positions from the approaching Japanese, and there were reports of armed deserters looting. A few seized small vessels to escape from Singapore, and others tried to board ships exiting the port area. During the early afternoon of 13 February, Percival held a conference with his principal staff and officers. Those present concurred that a counterattack had no hope of succeeding, and that the situation was desperate. Later that day, Percival confessed that resistance would probably last for another 24 or 48 hours.

On the night of 13 February, the last ships and other craft were ordered to leave the Singapore coastline, and set sail for the Indonesian islands of Java and Sumatra, with 3,000 evacuees on board. Through 14 February, the Japanese pressure on the western part of the Singapore perimeter increased. Late on the 14th, the Japanese 18th Division had advanced to less than 3 kilometers from the southern edge of Singapore city.

In the center, attacks by the Japanese 5th Division, supported by tanks, made further progress down the Bukit Timah road in central Singapore. They descended on a residential area at the fringes of Singapore city. Compounding Percivals woes, on the morning of 14 February he had been told, by the Director General of Civil Defense, that the citys water supplies would but cut off at any moment, with the islands reservoirs in Japanese hands.

By now, the Japanese artillery and air attacks were raining down at will on the city, leading to widespread civilian casualties and suffering. During a staff meeting that began at 9:30 am on 15 February, Percival was forced to confront the inevitable. There were chronic shortages of fuel and heavy ammunition. At 5:15 pm on 15 February, Percival and his Chief-of-Staff obeyed Japanese instructions to go to the Ford Factory at Bukit Timah, in order to discuss surrender terms with the Japanese officers.

Once the opposing sides had convened at the Ford Factory, Yamashita, as he was entitled to do, repeatedly demanded unconditional surrender from the reluctant Percival, under threat of renewed Japanese attacks. With Yamashita becoming increasingly impatient, Percival at last consented after a 55 minute meeting. The unconditional surrender was signed at 6:10 pm on 15 February 1942, and became effective at 8:30 pm.

Read more: Drawing the Soviet Union into a Vietnam quagmire

Stille wrote, The 70-day campaign for Malaya and Singapore was over, and the greatest military defeat in British history complete. Throughout the 10 weeks of fighting, the British-led forcessuffered138,708 losses, of which more than 130,000 were prisoners taken by the Japanese, about 80,000 of them in Singapore.

From the total casualties, 67,340 were in fact Indian, 38,496 were British, 18,490 were Australian and the local units suffered 14,382 killed, captured or wounded. Japanese casualties amounted to 9,824, that is just 7% of British Commonwealth losses.Taking into account that the Malayan campaign involved British-led divisions, on paper it entailed the largest surrender of forces in the field in British history.

The Japanese taking of Malaya and Singapore meant the British Empire was rapidly disintegrating. Japans victory on the Malayan peninsula foreshadowed their capture of Burma (Myanmar) and the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia) in the spring of 1942. The deep natural resources of Malaya, notably its tin and rubber, were now under Tokyos command; which the Japanese leadership calculated to be almost as significant as the petroleum-rich Dutch East Indies.

The above conquests enabled Japan, an otherwise resource poor country, to prosecute a vast war for nearly another 4 years.How could such a disaster have befallen the British in Mayala? Among the most important factors, as Bellamy alluded to earlier, was that the Japanese infantry were better trained, more determined and utilized superior tactics compared to the British and Commonwealth forces. The Japanese Army was not famed for its prowess with tanks and armor but, under Yamashitas leadership, the 25th Army made ample use of such vehicles on the Malayan peninsula.

By evening on the first day (8 December 1941) of the Japanese landings, northern Malaya had been lost to the enemy almost without a fight. On 10 December, the Japanese further wrested control of the nearby seas having on that day destroyed prominent British warships. Also at this time, they were winning command of the skies.

The British-led units were poorly deployed in Malaya, as they were dispersed over too wide an area, and could not concentrate their forces to repel the Japanese advance. The fighting for central Malaya in early January 1942 was pivotal. A successful stand by the defenders there could have enabled them to launch a counteroffensive against the Japanese, which may have knocked the latter off balance and at least delayed their march.

Read more: Japanese advance through British Malaya: 80 years ago

Once central Malaya and the capital city Kuala Lumpur were lost, it was inevitable that the southern portion of the peninsula would thereafter capitulate, along with Singapore. No further British reinforcements could be sent to Singapore, nor was the island prepared for an attack from the north.

Shane Quinn has contributed on a regular basis to Global Research for almost two years and has had articles published with American news outlets Peoples World and MintPress News, Morning Star in Britain, and Venezuelas Orinoco Tribune. The views expressed in the article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Global Village Space.

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The Japanese capture of Singapore, the 80th anniversary - Global Village space

This stunning 3D Mother 3 fan tribute video from Curiomatic (formerly Smashified) will blow you away, even if youve never touched the original game. Its easy to call the footage a lively recreation of some of the RPGs original highlights, but its so much more than that. Classic characters like Lucas and Kumatora have a claymation-like style as their 3D models trot around familiar locations. Even the combat has been given a colorful facelift, with battle themes and animations that are more vibrant than ever. See how Curiomatic reimagined Mother 3 in its 3D fan tribute video below.

Its a magical tribute and, sadly, nothing more. Curiomatics loving project is an impressive five-minute trip down memory lane but nothing you can actually play. Curiomatic specializes in visual experimentation in the gaming space, and it says its 3D Mother 3 tribute video has been in the works for more than two years, calling the project its most ambitious yet. It exists to commemorate the YouTube channels seven-year anniversary.

Although it would be nice to say the video is part of some official Mother 3-related celebration, many gaming fans have yet to experience the original classic. Mother 3 released exclusively to the Game Boy Advance more than 15 years ago and is only available in Japan, though a professional-level English fan patch is available. Although Mother 2 came West as EarthBound andMother 1 eventually arrived asEarthBound Beginnings, Nintendo has never done anything to suggest it is planning to localize the third entry, despite Mother 3 protagonist Lucas appearing in several Super Smash Bros. entries as a playable character.

In related news, Nintendo recently announced that EarthBound and EarthBound Beginnings have joined Nintendo Switch Onlines SNES and NES libraries.

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Mother 3 Tribute Video Is a Stunning 3D Recreation of a Nintendo Classic - The Escapist

If you're looking for some big premieres and finales to mix in with all that Olympics coverage, we have you covered this week.

Netflix is leading the charge with the premiere of its Texas Chainsaw Massacre sequel, plus the second season of Space Force starring The Office alum Steve Carell. AMC has the midseason premiere of The Walking Dead (which encompasses the latest batch of episodes in the super-sized final season) and Apple TV+ has its mind-wiping new drama Severance.

Our latest superhero obsession Peacemaker is wrapping up its first season (though there are apparently good odds it'll return for Season 2) and SYFY is bringing the alien-and-demon double shot with new episodes of Resident Alien and Astrid & Lilly Save the World. The CW has the season finale of 4400, Paramount Plus has a new episode of Star Trek: Discovery, HBO Max has a new Raised By Wolves, and The King's Man lands on streaming at Hulu (along with HBO).

Check out the full rundown below and let us know what you'll be watching.

Resident Alien (SYFY), Wednesday 9 p.m. - "Radio Harry"

Asta is concerned Harry is building another bomb and hopes to find out when they go camping on the reservation.

Peacemaker (HBO Max), Thursday - Season 1 Finale

SEASON FINALE: Explores the continuing story of the character that John Cena reprises in the aftermath of executive producer James Gunn's 2021 film The Suicide Squad a compellingly vainglorious man who believes in peace at any cost, no matter how many people he has to kill to get it!

Space Force (Netflix), Friday - Season 2

SEASON PREMIERE: A four-star general begrudgingly teams up with an eccentric scientist to get the U.S. military's newest agency Space Force ready for lift-off.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Netflix), Friday

FILM PREMIERE: In this sequel, influencers looking to breathe new life into a Texas ghost town encounter Leatherface, an infamous killer who wears a mask of human skin.

Severance (Apple TV+), Friday - Series Premiere

SERIES PREMIERE: Severance centers around Mark Scout (Adam Scott), a leader of a team of office workers whose memories have been surgically divided between their work and personal lives. This experiment in work-life balance' is called into question as Mark finds himself at the center of an unraveling mystery that will force him to confront the true nature of his work and of himself.

The Walking Dead (AMC), Sunday 9 p.m. - "No Other Way"

MIDSEASON PREMIERE: Daryl, Maggie, Gabriel, Negan and Elijah battle the Reapers for food; Aaron and the Alexandrians must survive a storm.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Monday 8 p.m. - "Freestyle Skiing, Snowboarding, Bobsled, Alpine Skiing"

LIVE: Coverage of the women's aerials final in freestyle skiing, the women's big air final in snowboarding, the first and second runs of the two-man event in bobsled and the women's downhill event in alpine skiing.

E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (BBC America), Monday 8 p.m.

NETWORK PREMIERE: A boy's close encounter with an alien stranded on Earth leads to a unique friendship in Steven Spielberg's Oscar-winning film.

4400 (The CW), Monday 9 p.m. - "Present Is Prologue"

SEASON FINALE: Tensions rise as an attack is made on the Bois Blanc, putting everyone's life in danger; Shanice and Logan do their best to keep Hayden safe; Claudette and Jharrell try to reason with Manny; Mildred still believes her sister can be saved.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Tuesday 8 p.m. - "Bobsled, Figure Skating, Alpine Skiing, Speed Skating"

LIVE: Coverage of the third and final runs of the two-man event in bobsled, the women's short program in figure skating, the first runs for the men's slalom in alpine skiing and the men's team pursuit in speed skating.

Bloodshot (FX), Tuesday 8 p.m.

PREMIERE: Killed in action, soldier Ray Garrison gets a new lease on life when the RST Corp. brings him back from the dead. But when the company decides to manipulate his mind and memories, Ray must embark on a mission to find out what's real and what's not.

The Osbournes Want to Believe (Travel), Tuesday 8 p.m. - "Hunt for the Paranormal"

Jack takes Ozzy and Sharon on a virtual Bigfoot hunt and schools them on demonic possession; then the Osbournes hop into their DeLorean for a celebrity time travel game.

Marvel Studios: Assembled (Disney+), Wednesday - The Making of Eternals

An in-depth look at the making of Eternals. This behind the scenes doc features on-set footage, interviews with stars and filmmakers, and more.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Wednesday 8 p.m. - "Freestyle Skiing, Short Track, Alpine Skiing"

LIVE: Coverage of the women's halfpipe qualifying round and the men's aerials final in freestyle skiing, the latest from short track and the downhill runs in the women's combined event in alpine skiing.

Resident Alien (SYFY), Wednesday 9 p.m. - "Radio Harry"

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

Astrid & Lilly Save the World (SYFY), Wednesday 10 p.m. - "One Rib"

Astrid and Lilly feel excluded when everyone does a new viral dance, until they learn it's a monster.

Peacemaker (HBO Max), Thursday - Season 1 Finale

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

Star Trek: Discovery (Paramount+), Thursday - New Episode

Fnds the crew of the U.S.S. Discovery landing in an unknown future far from the home they once knew. Now living in a time filled with uncertainty, the U.S.S. Discovery crew, along with the help of some new friends, must work together to restore hope to the Federation.

Raised by Wolves (HBO Max), Thursday - "Control"

Android partners Mother (Amanda Collin) and Father (Abubakar Salim), along with their brood of six human children, join a newly formed atheistic colony in Kepler 22 b's mysterious tropical zone. But navigating this strange new society is only the start of their troubles as Mother's "natural child" threatens to drive what little remains of the human race to extinction.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Thursday 8 p.m. - "Speed Skating, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing"

LIVE: Coverage of the women's 1000m in speed skating, the women's free skate event in figure skating and the women's halfpipe final in freestyle skiing.

BattleBots (Discovery), Thursday 8 p.m. - "Edges, Wedges and Wheels"

It's a symphony of destruction as a fresh group of bots look to leave their mark on the 2021 season with a signature victory; the night reaches a crescendo as two of the sport's best drivers square off in the main event.

Nine Days (Starz), Thursday 9 p.m.

NETWORK PREMIERE: A man interviews five unborn souls to determine which one can be given life on Earth.

Space Force (Netflix), Friday - Season 2

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

The King's Man (Hulu), Friday

STREAMING PREMIERE: One man must race against time to stop history's worst tyrants and criminal masterminds from starting a war and wiping out millions of people.

Texas Chainsaw Massacre (Netflix), Friday

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

Severance (Apple TV+), Friday - Series Premiere

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Friday 8 p.m. - "Bobsled, Figure Skating, Freestyle Skiing"

LIVE; Coverage of the first and second runs of the two-woman event in bobsled, the pairs short program in figure skating and the men's halfpipe final in freestyle skiing.

Knives Out (SYFY), Friday 8 p.m.

The circumstances surrounding the death of crime novelist Harlan Thrombey are mysterious, but there's one thing that renowned Detective Benoit Blanc knows for sure everyone in the wildly dysfunctional Thrombey family is a suspect.

Antlers (HBO), Friday 8:15 p.m.

NETWORK PREMIERE: A small-town Oregon teacher and her brother, the local sheriff, discover that a young student is harboring a dangerous secret with frightening consequences.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Saturday 8 p.m. - "Bobsled, Figure Skating"

LIVE: Coverage of the third and final runs of the two-woman and the third and final runs of the four-man events in bobsled and the pairs free skate in figure skating.

The King's Man (HBO), Saturday 8 p.m.

PREMIERE: One man must race against time to stop history's worst tyrants and criminal masterminds from starting a war and wiping out millions of people.

2022 Winter Olympics (NBC), Sunday 8 p.m. - "Closing Ceremony"

NEW: The Winter Olympics conclude with the closing ceremony from Beijing National Stadium.

Around the World in 80 Days on Masterpiece (PBS), Sunday 8 p.m. - Season Finale

SEASON FINALE: Fogg meets an old friend at New York's Grand Central Depot and must decide if he wants to continue his trip.

The Walking Dead (AMC), Sunday 9 p.m. - "No Other Way"

See more in our "Highlights" section above.

Two Sentence Horror Stories (The CW), Sunday 9 p.m. - "Heirloom"

A recent widower and his daughter find their new home sits on haunted land with deeply rooted horror spanning generations.

Two Sentence Horror Stories (The CW), Sunday 9:30 p.m. - "Homecoming"

SEASON FINALE: Three brothers return to their childhood home to visit their dying father only to be forced to confront the demons of their past.

Talking Dead (AMC), Sunday 10 p.m. - "The Walking Dead 1109"

Fans, actors and producers discuss "The Walking Dead" and "Fear the Walking Dead."

*TV listing information via streaming and network listings, Zap2it.

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TV THIS WEEK: The Walking Dead, Space Force, Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Resident Alien & Peacemaker - Syfy

SpaceX's Starship may only be a backdrop in the next event to showcase the Stainless Steel spacecraft in the upcoming event on Starbase, Boca Chica. The event coming by Thursday, February 10, will bring a massive update on the Starship spacecraft, especially with what it has to offer in the coming months after it is in the process of getting the test launch license.

(Photo : Screenshot From Commons.Wikipedia.org)SpaceX 'Massive Starship Launch Tower' in Texas Remains Unapproved by FAA.

According to Teslarati's report, the SpaceX Starship will be the "ultimate backdrop" in an event for the spacecraft, and it pertains to the non-operational situation of the Stainless Steel rocket. The report said that it may be so that the Starship will not have a test launch anytime soon, especially now that the massive crane is not yet operational.

The Booster 4, or the Super Heavy that will propel the Starships towards the sky, is now in position the orbital launch pad, something that is not the right location for the spacecraft, says Teslarati. The Super Heavy and Starship should be with Mechazilla, also known as the massive structure with arms to carry both spacecraft.

Read Also:SpaceX Falcon 9 Sends US Spy Satellite Into Orbit! Starlink Launches To Follow

Musk said that the Starship is a good backdropcompared to others, and this may also mean that the CEO is confirming that it would only be an opportunity to show it to the public. However, it is important to note that Musk did not confirm anything regarding the Starship's flights, particularly with the upcoming showcase and weeks to come.

SpaceX Starship's focus is to go to Mars, and the mission is to establish a colony in the Red Planet for the humans to live. The multi-planetary goals came from CEO Elon Musk, and this is because he thinks that this is the solution for the world to avoid and experience population collapse,which he said is happening now in most nations.

The mission to Marsis a massive step for mankind and the space company from Musk, and this is because they aim to go places where no one else can come. However, it would ensure that legitimate scientists and experts will soon join its human flights that will happen in a few years. Musk thinks that coming to Mars may help in making life multi-planetary.

The space company from Musk will soon hold a showcase in Texas to address its Starship plans for the future, especially now that it is close to happening. Moreover, there may be speculations regarding its delayed flights again, but that will soon get attention and a discussion from Musk that will wait until Thursday to address this issue.

Related Article:SpaceX Starship Presentation: Full Stack on Starbase with Super Heavy Live Next Week, Elon Musk Confirms

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Written by Isaiah Richard

2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.

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SpaceX Starship Backdrop? Elon Musk Says it is a Good One After Reports of Mission Not Close to Launching - Tech Times

The clock is ticking for the International Space Station, with NASA last week declaring plans to let it plummet back to Earth in 2031.

The iconic piece of space infrastructurewill be nudged out of its orbit and eventually meetits watery demise when it plunges into the ocean and smashes into smithereens.

That day will mark the end of 32 years of space station construction, experiments, photography and since November 2000 continuous human habitation,all whilehurtling around the planet once every 90 minutes or so.

On New Year's Eve, NASA extended the space station's operations from 2024 to 2030.

Given the space station's decades ofinternationalcooperation not to mention the cash needed to get it up and running (it's the most expensive object ever built) why will it be dragged down anddestroyed?

And once it's gone, what will take its place?

The space station's international focus has been a "wonderful thing in many ways", says Duncan Steel, a space scientist atXerra Earth Observation Institute in New Zealand.

The US and Russia announced plans to build it together in 1993, and Japanese, Canadian and European space agencies signed on later.

The first segment of the space station, the Zarya Control Module, launched aboard a Russian Proton rocket from Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan in 1998.

Tonnes of parts have been added, removed and replaced over the years since.

"But," Dr Steel says,"it was never the idea that the space station would be permanent."

This is partly because, quite simply, it's gunking up and wearing out.

It's not just humans livingon board. Bacteria, fungi and other microbessurviveand thrivethere too.

"Imagineliving in a caravan, and you couldn't open the windows, but youhave to keep it clean," Dr Steel says.

"There's colonies of bacteria inside the space station which we don't necessarily see, but you could expect to cause all sorts of problems.

"When there's so muchrecycled air ... it can get into the electronics and so on."

The outer surfaces are becoming worn too.

The space station orbits about 400km above Earth's surface.

Any objectsbelow about 500kmnaturally fall back to Earth, so the space station is regularly boosted upto counter this effect.

This means there's not too much in the way of space junk in the space station's path (it's not completely clear, though).

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But what is plentiful at 400km up is oxygen atoms. They comprise about 96 per cent of the atmosphere in low-Earth orbit.

"Oxygen atoms are very strongly oxidising, and the space station is flying around 7.8km per second through this very tenuous atmosphere of oxygen atoms," Dr Steel said.

"And that's actually corroding the outside."

Docking and undocking of vehicles ferrying supplies and people to and fro canput strain on the space station's structure, and various cracks and leaks have been patched up over the years.

The constant maintenance and upkeep needed to keep the station in working order and support inhabitants is expensive, so doing away with the space station will saveplenty of cash.

For instance, NASA estimates savings"to be approximately $1.3 billion in 2031, ramping up to $1.8 billion by 2033", which is money that could be put towards efforts "toexplore further and faster into deep space".

The space station's descent won't be a random tumble back to Earth.

Once the space station is emptied and stripped of whatever needs to be saved,operators on the ground will control its descent using thrusters, gradually puttingit oncourse for its eventual crash.

Its final resting place will be submerged ina patch of water dubbed the spacecraft cemetery (more formally called theSouth Pacific Oceanic Uninhabited Area).

Hundreds of spacecraft have plopped in this zone,which is the furthest location from any land.

January 2031 is roughly when it will all kick off, but exactly when the operators will begin theirdescent manoeuvres is still up in the air.

And it all really depends on what the Sun is doing at the time.

When it'sactive, sunspots and flares eruptfrom its surface, and Earth's atmosphere gets warmer and expands.

If the denser lower atmosphere puffs up past 400km,the space station mustdeal with more drag,and it drops faster.

"Thiscausesobjects to re-enter the atmosphere and the space station is especially prone to that," Dr Steel said.

The International Space Stationis the only fully operational and habitable space station up there at the moment, but it wasn't the first, and it certainly won't be the last.

Dwellers of the spacecraft cemetery include remnants of the old US space station Skylab, plusa handful of Soviet space stations that were launched in the 1970s and 80s, including the world's first modular space station, Mir.

Russia, which has built and operatedone side of the International Space Station, plans todevelop and deploy its own enterprisethe Russian Orbital Service Station in five or six years' time.

According to Russian news agency TASS, NASA and Roscosmos are still in talks about International Space Station operations until 2030, and whether Russia will still be involved.

A space station already under constructionis the Chinese Tiangong, the first part of which launched in April last year.

(It's the third Chinese space station the nation launchedTiangong-1 and Tiangong-2 in 2011 and 2016respectively but this latest iterationis the first to have a modular design.)

China has never been a part of the International Space Station. In 2011, US politicians passed the Wolf Amendment, which all but barred cooperation between NASA and Chinese organisations, citing human rights andnational security concerns.

But other agencies,such as the European Space Agency,have worked with China and continue to do so.

So what about NASA?

With its sights set further afield to deep space, the US space agency is funding commercial partners and outsourcing its low-Earth orbit activities to companies such as Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin and Lockheed Martin.

It's already given Axiom Space permission to attach modules to the space station, which will eventually detach to become their own low-Earth orbit facility.

Enrico Palermo, head of the Australian Space Agency, says this new suite of space stationsparticularly those from commercial operators "presents a terrific opportunity for the Australian space sector".

"Our industry will have a range of choices to suit their needs and fast-track their access to space,which will ensure our research and development opportunities are maximised."

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The International Space Station will meet its end in 2031. Where will it crash and what will take its place? - ABC News

The first mission in NASA's program to take humans back to the Moon has been delayed until spring at the earliest, as the highly anticipated rollout of space agency's new moon rocket, on its launch pad in Florida for final tests before a first flight, needed to complete more safety checks, the agency said.

NASA, which late last year had targeted liftoff this month for its uncrewed Artemis 1 mission around the moon and back, declined to set a revised launch date, but the delay would preclude a flight before April.

At a briefing for reporters, NASA executives said there were no specific, major difficulties slowing their schedule, but rather a higher-than-usual volume of technical hurdles to clear in preparing a large, complex rocket system for its very first launch.

"It's really what I would call a kind of punch list of a whole bunch of things that we absolutely need to finish up and then we'll be ready to roll the vehicle out," said Tom Whitmeyer, a deputy associate NASA administrator.

NASA officials said workforce and supply disruptions related to the recent omicron-driven surge in COVID-19 infections also were factors in slowing down the work.

At stake is the combined fate of NASA's heavy-lift Space Launch System (SLS) rocket and the Orion crew capsule it will send aloft for the Artemis program, aimed at returning humans to the moon and eventually establishing a long-term lunar colony as a precursor to sending astronauts to Mars.

The United States Apollo program sent six astronauts to the lunar surface between 1969 and 1972, the only crewed spaceflights yet to achieve that feat.

In November, NASA announced that it would aim to achieve the first crewed lunar landing of Artemis, named for the twin sister of Apollo in Greek mythology, as early as 2025.

However, the space agency has several spaceflight stepping stones to meet before it gets there, starting with a successful maiden flight of the SLS and Orion, now in the final stages of pre-launch preparations.

Rollout of the towering spacecraft, a key milestone marking the public's first glimpse of the newly assembled, 36-story-tall rocket-and-capsule vehicle as it is moved, had recently been planned for mid-February.

Under the updated timeframe outlined on Wednesday, the SLS-Orion will be trundled out on a giant crawler-transporter in March probably around the middle of the month from its assembly building to Launch Pad 39-B at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Once there, it will take about two weeks for technicians to ready the launch vehicle for a "wet dress rehearsal" that includes fully loading the rocket's fuel tanks with propellant and running through a simulated countdown.

Afterward, NASA will roll the SLS-Orion stack back into the assembly building for a last round of checks before officially setting a new target liftoff date.

In a statement on Wednesday, NASA said it was reviewing launch windows in April and May, but the timeline could slip further depending on the outcome of the dress rehearsal, space agency officials said.

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A Wine Bar for Waynesboro

In a space between Initial Inspirations and the Shenandoah Valley Art Center, Kelly and Brandon Sheelyboth long-time Waynesboro residentswill open The City Foxes Wine Bar and Market this spring. In the past, the space housed a beauty salon and a storefront church. Its a familiar neighborhood for Kelly, who formerly worked at the Waynesboro Heritage Museum just up the street.

The Sheelys have wanted to own their own business for a long time and, as fans of Virginia wine, decided to make local wines the centerpiece. Kelly said theyll focus on wines from the Shenandoah Valley first. Theyll also offer other local products, both food and art-related.

Kelly said theyll also have eight tables for those who want to enjoy a meal prepared on the premises, featuring local produce, cheeses and baked goods. Other dishes will be packaged for carry-out. Meanwhile, she said, residents are impatient for opening day. Its slower than we had hoped, she said, with supply chain shortages and construction delays. Find City Foxes Wine Bar and Market on Facebook and at thecityfoxes.com.

The Crozet Artisan Depot presents metalsmith Anna Lee of Elkton and watercolorist Amy Snowden of Kill Devils Hills, N.C. as guest artists for February. The two sisters, who collaborate in their jewelry business, will be at the Depot February 12 from 1 to 3 p.m. in the historic Crozet train depot, 5791 Three Notchd Rd.

Lee and Snowden named their business, Mary Maveline Originals, after their two grandmothers, Mary Eloise Kelsoe and Maveline Gammill, whom they honor as beautiful, industrious, and special women. Lee paints original miniature watercolor paintings, then frames between glass panes with a lead-free solder to become a part of jewelry crafted by Snowden.

Chase and Stephanie Hoover are the new owners of the former Colony Motel on the Waynesboro slope of Afton Mountain. Theyre giving it a complete overhaul, and will open this summer as the Grey Pine Lodge. Chase Hoover said theyll also have space for indoor and outdoor events.

Mi Rancho in Old Trail has completely remodeled its interior, with walled booths, fresh paint, and south-of-the-border statuary.

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Business Briefs: February 2022 - The Crozet Gazette

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Startup jumping into space race with 3D printed rockets - Index-Journal

Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is confident that humans will land on Mars by 2026. As he has been an advocate of hypothetical Mars colonisation, he might have persuaded people that human life outside Earth is possible.

The idea of setting up colonies on Mars has received interest from all corners as space scientists and experts are investigating all possibilities with several Mars missions.

In pursuit to pull off the extraordinary, the scientists and Musk's dream can get some help from the recent volcanic eruption near Tonga that unleashed explosive forces that undermined the power of the Hiroshima atomic bomb.

The undersea eruption of the Hunga-Tonga-Hunga-Ha'apai volcano was so powerful as it sent tsunami waves across the Pacific Ocean and was heard some 2,300km away in New Zealand. Thousands of homes were destroyed.

Locals and survivors had described how the devastating Pacific blast "messed up" their brains. In the aftermath, parts of the nation were covered in ashes, communication with other countries was cut because the undersea lines were damaged.

ALOS READ |Scientists find evidence of an extreme solar 'tsunami' deep within Earth's ice

The Pacific nation has been reeling as other countries like Australia, New Zealand and India have come forward to help as even drinking water was scarce. But slowly and surely, the disaster-hit nation is pushing forward to reconstruct and reestablish.

Now, scientists are probing the eruption activities to learn and prepare humankind for such occurrences in future with advancements in technology.

Besides, that volcano could offer valuable clues about the formation of other planets like Mars and Venus as it is offering researchers a rare chance to study how water and lava interact.

ALSO READ |Water flowed on Mars about a billion years longer than previous estimates: NASA

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center chief scientist James Garvin told Reuters that NASA experts had been studying the volcano for seven years before it erupted, and were now using forensic techniques to examine the remnants of the islands, Hunga Tonga and Hunga Ha'apai.

"We took that volume of mass ejected and the energetics to explosively fragment it, and calculated - using fairly classical techniques - how much energy that would take to break rock.... to break it up into little bits and throw it as ash and steam up," Garvin said.

"We did that calculation and we got numbers that range from something equivalent to the blast of a small asteroid that would hit the earth - about 10 metric, megatons of TNT or equivalent - to things even bigger," he said.

Garvin said that by studying the life cycle of the Tonga volcano, scientists have a "rare opportunity" to understand how formations may have been made on other planets like Mars and Venus.

WATCH |Second earthquake hits Tonga few days after massive volcanic eruption

(With inputs from agencies)

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Elon Musk`s dream of colonising Mars has a connection with Tonga volcanic eruption - WION